Construction of Berczy condo building reaches 5 floors

The last time I walked past The Berczy site in May, the building’s underground levels had been built, and support columns for the first floor were being put in place. But it was still way too early to tell what the 13-storey condo complex was going to look like. A repeat visit to the area on Wednesday gave me a much better idea of how The Berczy will look and fit into its lower Church Street location.

The Berczy is rising on a long rectangular site that extends nearly a full block, from Front Street at the north almost all the way to The Esplanade at the south. Two floors of the building are now visible behind the hoarding along Front Street, but construction is more advanced on the south section of The Berczy along Church Street, where up to five floors have taken shape so far.

Designed by Young + Wright/IBI Group Architects, The Berczy is a project of Concert Properties. The 166-unit building is completely sold out.

My previous posts on The Berczy, published on March 13 2011 and January 13 2011, featured photos showing how the location looked before and during site demolition and pre-construction work. Below is a series of photos showing demolition, excavation, foundation building and construction progress since April of last year.

April 21 2011: Demolition of the brick building that formerly stood at 6 Church Street on The Berczy condo site. The exterior of the building had been used as a filming location for the TV series Queer as Folk, which aired from 2000 to 2005.

April 21 2011: The Keg steakhouse chain once operated a restaurant here

April 21 2011: Another view of the 6 Church Street demolition

April 21 2011: 6 Church Street viewed from the east side of the street

This Google Streetview image shows how the four-storey building at 6 Church Street looked before demolition, when it still housed a Keg steakhouse. 6 Church Street originally was known as the Greey’s Factory Building. It was constructed sometime around 1900.

Another Google Streetview image of 6 Church Street. Toronto City Council gave the building designated heritage status in September 2006. In 2010, the city registered a heritage easement agreement on the title for the property. A May 30 2006 report by city planning staff notes that the developer plans to rebuild part of the facade of 6 Church Street and incorporate it into The Berczy development.

This illustration, from a September 18 2009 report by city planners, depicts The Berczy’s east elevation, and shows how the heritage facade from 6 Church Street will be incorporated into the east wall of the new building.

April 21 2011: Low-rise buildings to the north of 6 Church have already been razed

April 21 2011: Only 2 floors of 6 Church Street remain to be taken apart

April 21 2011: Demolition crew at work atop 6 Church Street

April 21 2011: Demolition activity on the “midsection” of The Berczy site

This Google Streetview image shows the low-rise buildings at 6-16 Church Street before demolition. The trees were destroyed to permit construction of The Berczy; however, the developer will install an irrigation system and plant new trees in their place.